Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: An Elysian Tail
by David Waite
Summary: In this odd crossover, two authors write together to bring Aryn the Espurr, a human-turned-Pokemon, into a world based off of the land of Falana in Dust: An Elysian Tail. Featuring many different characters from Dust turned into Pokemon, Aryn must find out why he's in the world he is and put a stop to horrible natural disasters before the world is too broken to save.
1. Prologue: Aryn the Espurr

_**Prologue.**_

Ow.

That… that was a pointy rock underneath him. And it hurt. Apparently, it hurt enough to wake him. He'd fallen asleep? Wait, since when had he been asleep? The last thing he could remember was. Um. Well whatever it was, it would come to him eventually.

Right now he was sitting on rocky ground, gazing out over a massive underground lake. And it was beautiful. Dimly lit and deep below the surface of whatever part of the world lay above, sure. Completely alien and unfamiliar to the point of unnerving, maybe. But somehow beautiful. He couldn't help but stare. At least for a few minutes before the "unnerving" part came back around and flooded his brain with questions. How had he ended up so deep underground? Where even WAS this spot so deep underground? Why was his brain a complete blank slate as to what he'd been doing before?

… Well he wasn't gonna find out just sitting there. So he got up, went to take a step forward- and had his knee fail to bend and send him straight onto his face. He let out a squeak of distress. And then froze. Did he just squeak? Like a wounded cat? What? WHAT. When he brought up his paws- he didn't even have hands, he had tiny paws- to his chest, he encountered fur. A large tuft of greyish fur. Wait, he was entirely covered in fur. That wasn't right. He wasn't supposed to be fluffy. Couldn't remember what he had been before but he was pretty sure fluffy was not it. And his ears… oh geez they were huge. Huge, folded down ears that he could almost feel a pressure against. From the inside. It wasn't hurting him, but it was just so strange. He had to see. He had to see it. He crawled his way to the edge of the massive lake and OH ARCEUS THAT WAS A POKÉMON LOOKING BACK AT HIM.

He raised a paw. The Pokémon raised a paw. He frowned. The little Pokémon reflected in the lake also frowned. Yes, that was his own reflection looking back at him in complete shock and confusion. He was… Well, he was somehow a tiny cat-like Pokémon. Next to an underground lake. And he remembered absolutely nothing.

What a wonderful day this would be.

He DID still need to get moving, though. He couldn't sit here and expect to be found, that was plain wishful thinki- ow. Ow his nose. He was finally registering the pain of falling flat on his round feline face. And there was red stuff tainting the lake he was still openly gawking at that was no doubt falling from the throbbing pinpoint that was his new nose. A nosebleed. WONDERFUL. He winced and brought up a paw to try and keep it from leaking too much as he got up and (with much more caution this time) set off on his way to try and find an exit. There had to be one somewhere.

Sadly, he got nowhere fast. All his efforts did was lead him in circles and cause several more painful tumbles onto his face due to having tiny stubby legs that he struggled to walk with. By the fourth time he had returned to the lake he had basically admitted defeat and sat back down next to the water to pout. Maybe await rescue. Odds were slim, though. Who could be this far underground and not royally lost like himself?

As if by fate, a pair of Pokémon was within the caverns of the lake's location, tapping paws along the ground as they trekked. It was a darker place, the only light coming from the water itself as they ventured deeper into the dungeon-like caves. Black legs carried a blue jackal pup as his cyan eyes looked around the area. His neck was covered by a red bandana and his hip supported a Treasure Bag while they travelled, and he seemed to be carrying a rather large blade upon his back, hilted safely. The deep blue pupil right above the handle, however, denoted intelligence while a blue fabric came from the tip, tied to the pup's arm up to his shoulder.

"Aaah… it's been about an hour since we arrived down here, Ahrah… Are you sure we're not lost? This Mystery Dungeon's already thrown us through a loop before," came the slightly soft voice of the jackal, an airy sound escaping his mouth. His lips pursed, and he seemed to let out a small hum while he walked. Despite this, the gem-like eye upon the blade glowed with words pressed out with telepathy. Anyone within hearing range would be able to hear his voice.

"Dust, we have travelled quite deep within the caverns of Mirror Cave. We passed by quite a few different sections of the river, and all we must do is find out how deep Mirror Lake is. you are a Riolu. Can you not sense anything beyond the walls?" Ahrah's voice was deeper and much silkier than the jackal pup's own voice, even holding more experience behind the words. Despite this, the Riolu he had spoken to was mildly miffed at what he had just heard.

"Yes, I'm a Riolu. Not a Lucario. I can't sense anything through Aura just yet, just emotions." Ahrah let out a hum, the slitted iris upon the blade's eye glancing up, making Dust peek back slightly. "... what, is that what you're telling me to do? Try and get a feeling for any… feelings?" A confirming blink from Ahrah, and Dust seemed to give a shrug, closing his eyes slowly. "Worth a shot."

With a slow inhale, a smooth exhale followed suit as the Fighting-type began to let his abilities work. Emotions were his target as he searched the cave slowly, trying to find and fledgling feelings pressed out by either the inhabitants or a distressed Pokémon. And wouldn't you know it? Fear, confusion and quite a bit of frustration were all coming from one specific area. Probably a single Pokemon, no doubt. "I have something," came Dust's announcement of his find, and away they went.

It didn't take long to relocate the river they had been attempting to follow, and before long, the path they were travelling along finally began to open up before them.

And entire lake with some of the cleanest waters in the land was right before them. The Mirror Lake, their destination, had been found… as was the source of the negativity the Riolu had been following. Ahrah piped up almost immediately as they arrived. "Dust. Off to the right of the entrance by the water. An Espurr." Following the direction, Dust immediately glanced over.

Between said Espurr admitting defeat to the caves and the arrival of Dust and Ahrah, a bit of time had passed. The little fellow had had time to stop bleeding, at least. Falling on your face several times kinda messed up your nose something fierce. He hadn't cleaned it off of him yet- the lake was too clean and pretty to ruin with any more of his fluids. So he had simply sat down and tried his best to ignore the throbbing pain that was left after the blood had stopped. Once he had worked up the courage (or maybe stupidity) to try wandering to find the exit again, he would get up. But for now he was just too tired and cranky and his nose hurt.

He was halfway to falling asleep by the time the jackal pup and his sword friend came wandering into the massive cavern. And the Honedge's voice genuinely made him jump and squeak in surprise- someone else was here! Yes! Good! He wasn't alone and hopefully they weren't as lost as the kitty. Please don't also be lost. That would suck beyond compare if they were all lost down here. "H-Hey!" He piped, carefully getting up. Don't fall again, you derp. It was embarrassing enough the first six times. And no one was around for those. "Please tell me you two aren't lost like me. That would reall-SQUEAK." AND THERE HE WENT AGAIN. Ugh. Heavens help him, he was going to learn to walk with these tiny stubby legs and he was going to learn SOON so this stopped happening. "Owwww."

Dust stared. Ahrah stared. They just both… stared. This little cat, literally half Dust's size, just completely face-planted upon the ground with the grace of a rock tumbling down a cliff. There was such a hilarity to it that while Ahrah kept a completely straight expression (for a sword), merely blinking, Dust couldn't help himself. He brought a paw to his mouth. His eyes were wide, and he was holding his breath. Breathe, Dust. Breathe.

After that moment of trying not to cackle at the misfortune of another Pokemon, the Riolu began to jog over, promptly helping them up. "Well hello to you, too. We're certainly not lost… in fact, being here is where we need to be." After getting the cat into a sitting position, Dust plopped himself in front of them. "... you okay there? You look like that wasn't your only fall."

"It wasn't…" He winced, looking up at the Riolu with gratitude. "I've been stuck down here for a while and in case it wasn't obvious, walking is not my strong point right now." Blessedly he was avoiding the bitter taste of yet ANOTHER nosebleed. That would've just been the icing on the cake that was, thus far, the worst day he could remember. "I kept falling over. And when I wasn't eating rocks I was walking in circles. Kept coming back to this lake." He then looked down at the source of most of his trouble so far- his tiny legs. "I was gonna try again after I stopped bleeding, but you guys showed up."

"I'm shocked you got out here, though. Espurr aren't native to this cave." With a small wave of his paw, he slowly began to dig into his Treasure Bag upon his hip, slowly pulling out a small bandage roll. "If you kept falling after getting here and couldn't navigate the caves… how did you get to this lake?" As he asked, he reached up, beginning to gently roll up some bandages and plug the little cat's nose up. After this? Another reach into the bag produced a cloth, one he soaked gently to clean off the Espurr's face. "Oh, by the way. I'm Dust, and the Honedge here is Ahrah." A small blink of recognition from the blade is all that followed.

"Well, nice to meetcha both… even if the circumstances really blow." He pouted as bits of bandage were shoved up his nose to stop the blood and a wet cloth was dabbed at his face. "And… I don't remember. I jus' woke up next to the lake an' such. Every try at finding an exit did the same thing." He blinked. "Oh yeah. I'm Aryn, by the way."

Both of Aryn's savior's couldn't help but stare cautiously. Waking up at the lake with no recalling how you got there? That threw up quite a few red flags in the two explorer's minds, Ahrah piping up softly at this. "Aryn? Can you tell us everything you do remember? If you were attacked, or if something stood out to you the day before?"

Dust nodded gently, beginning to slowly stand himself up, stashing the dirtied cloth away to wash later before gripping Ahrah's hilt defensively. He looked around, humming. "We're an Exploration Team. If someone did this to you, we'll catch them."

That was… comforting. Or would have been if combing his mind provided anything. Nope, he was up blank. "... Sorry, but no. I… I only remember that my name's Aryn, I wasn't always an Espurr, and I've been stuck in these caves since I woke up. That's it." Did it sound suspicious? Yes. Yes it did. "A-And I know how that sounds. Trust me. But I really got nothing." The resulting expression was almost fearful, as he looked up at Dust. Please believe me.

Dust, however, had to stare. What. No, seriously, what? The amnesia was something Dust could deal with, but the fact that they weren't always an Espurr? That just didn't make an ounce of sense. He slowly let go of Ahrah's hilt, even the Honedge giving a blank blink in thought, and began to ponderously glance over at Aryn. "... I'm sorry, but… could you elaborate on that? You weren't always… an Espurr? Last I checked, Espurr don't have a pre-evolved form."

"I-i don't mean in that way. I mean as in, I was something else… en… tirely." He trailed off mid-sentence with a wince at how that sounded. He just kept making himself look more suspicious. Dust was staring at him. Ahrah was staring at him. Neither of them would be able to swallow this.

Dust would've spoken up. He normally would've. But Ahrah ended up beating him to the punch, his telepathy kicking in a bit quickly and firmly. "As an odd question, our world has had interesting things happen regarding legends. One such legend fits this very oddly." Dust blinked, looking back at the blade before the Honedge spoke up once more. "Did you, perhaps, used to be human?"

"Uhhh…" Was that what he remembered? It sounded familiar. The word 'human' definitely struck a chord, so he nodded. "I-I think so. Yeah, I used to be human. B-but that's all I know…"

"Ahrah, what are you going on about? This isn't a legend I've heard." He looks over at the blade, and they promptly blink again, only to close their eye.

"It is not something that is very commonly known. The reason it is mere legend," the Honedge explained, "is because many who knew the Pokemon theorized to be human beforehand did not know of their original form." Dust couldn't help but stare, then glance down at Aryn, Ahrah going a bit further. "Only those closest to them knew, and opted to keep it a secret. It's a miracle the legend even formed, but it seems as though it had a grain of truth."

Dust, however, was getting a bit wary. "... but, why would a human turn into a Pokemon?" His voice was mildly shaky, as if worry was taking over in his mind.

"That, I do not know. All I do know is that the ones that became Pokemon lived to be very, very successful in life, yet never did recall anything from their past. I think." Ahrah opened his eye, practically smiling with it reassuringly. Dust, however, just looked exasperated and concerned.

Aryn simply… kept quiet for this. He listened, but he kept quiet and kept his paws where his lap would normally be. So there was a whole legend attached to humans-turned-Pokemon who just happened to have a blank slate for a brain. Wonderful. At least it meant he wasn't gonna be left here by the duo. He couldn't be sure, but was Ahrah… smiling? Whatever it was, it was comforting to some degree.

Dust stared for a few more moments before beginning to reach a paw out. He gripped at the cat's own paw, and gently helped Aryn up to a standing position, but he never did let go. No more falling for him. "... well, even if you aren't some legend come true and end up just wandering around aimlessly, we're still an Exploration Team. And we rescue those like you, lost without a way out." With this, the Riolu dug within his Treasure Bag and pulled out a small badge, smiling. "We're Team Dust Storm. And we're gonna get you outta here with this."

"... Thanks." For the first time since they'd met, Aryn tried on a smile. It was a little small and uncertain and scared, but it was a smile. He would owe these two something fierce after getting him out of this mess. He just knew it. But for now he just needed to worry about getting out. He wasn't about to fall on his face another time with Dust helping him (hopefully).

After Aryn had situated himself, Dust noded slowly, raising the badge with his other paw. It was bright white with a red center, wings protruding from the sides as he clicked the center in. And with that… a pillar of light immediately surrounded them. "Hold on!"

And away they went. Outside of the dungeon they were in, and towards a much safer place.


	2. Chapter 1: The Guild of Aurora

Almost as instantly as they were very oddly and suddenly teleported from the caverns of Mirror Lake's home, they had popped right up on the outside. The flash of light dissipated, and a feeling of floating that had lasted the split seconds that they were being transported immediately halted, dropping the trio on a dirt road, the sky above them slowly going from a clear blue to a slight orange as the sun seemed to be slowly setting over the horizon.

Dust gave a small shake, his fur mildly out of place from the suddenness, and Ahrah simply blinked off any feelings of discomfort he had been experienced, shuddering the fabric to help himself get situated. After that was done, the emanation Pokemon took a glance down at his newly befriended Espurr. "So! We're safe now. How was that?"

"... Urp." Thankfully he had managed to NOT land on his face this go around. He had landed on his tail instead. "M'fiine. Just… just a second. Gotta…" Which way was up? It took a good moment before he could figure out which way that was. Up. Obviously. When he did, he shook his head to try and stop his head from spinning. "YupI'mfine."

"Oh, feel free to admit your nausea. It truly takes time to get used to," stated Ahrah rather bluntly. He blinked, 'smiling' once more to reassure Aryn as he sat on the ground, though Dust was busy helping the cat onto his little feet.

"Well, once you can see straight, take a look behind us. You might like whatcha see." A small grin, and Dust motioned to the aforementioned structure. And what was seen was very interesting.

A Dragonite statue was before it, with a Treasure Bag and an Explorer's Badge clenched within it's claws, raised up high. Behind it seemed to be a gate between two large stone lookout towers, though the building they were attached to was nothing to sneeze at. Not only did it seem to be massive in width, but it had quite a bit of height to it, the large, two-story structure seemingly built with longevity in mind. It was almost entirely made from molded rocks, carvings of many differing designs trailing around them in perfect symmetry, paintings accentuating the carvings to help give it a sense of depth. It depicted nothing specifically, but it was certainly very colorful and beautiful to be seen, many spirals and designs seen curving and travelling along the stone walls. "Welcome to the Moon Guild, Aryn! My home, Ahrah's home and yours until we can find out where you came from."

… Moon Guild. Okay. Yeah, that… that name fit a structure like this. Not only was it huge and to some degree intimidating, but also oddly beautiful to the tiny kitty. He wasn't sure why. He just liked the look of it. "... Oh wow. Uh, okay… Thanks." He managed to smile up at Dust. "I'm gonna owe you guys for this."

"We'll see about that." Dust glanced back down at Aryn, staring seriously before slowly grinning at him. "Our mission today was simply to explore the Mirror Caves and find our way to the Lake inside."

"What Dust is trying to say is that you were not our mission. To that effect, you were unofficially rescued, and therefore owe us nothing," came Ahrah's explanation of the situation, Dust nodding and giving a small, toothy grin to the Espurr beside them both.

"That still counts as a rescue. So I owe you guys thanks at the very least." Aryn grinned back, revealing a tiny set of fangs. It felt funny to smile when you had wads of bandages shoved up your nose. He had just learned this. And found Dust was now staring, mildly amused and holding back a snicker. "Yeah, I know. You can laugh."

Dust didn't laugh, but he did let out a chuckle, Ahrah blinking in response to it. However, the Riolu did reach down, gripping the two pieces of wrapped bandages and giving a small pull. Out they came, both nostrils free of any drippage. "I couldn't help it. You looked like a dork."

"... I felt like a dork. I mean, c'mo- ow." He was very careful to rub UNDER his nose to prevent it bleeding again. "C'mon. I fell on my face so much back there it wasn't even funny." He decided he could risk giving the little black speck in the middle of his face a wiggle. "So, uh… Should we be going in, or…?"

"Actually, no. I'm waiting." Dust slowly crossed his arms, looking up at the lookout towers. "We should be expecting to be shouted at in a few seconds."

Ahrah promptly glanced down at Aryn. "I would suggest holding onto Dust's paw." Once this had registered and took place, a blur came flying from the left tower, and a massive thud echoed out, rumbling the ground as what looked like a massive boulder had been hurled at them both. And yet, it had four arms, legs, and once the dust settled… a very unamused expression on a face.

"Dust! Fidget was pretty peeved at you for leaving her behind for this mission! Didn't I tell you to treat the others with respect?!" came the booming, displeased shouting of a Graveler crossed. Dust simply leaned back slightly, wincing slightly from the force of the shouting.

"... and take her into a cave where she'd be clinging to me for dear life?" Slowly, the Riolu waved his free paw about the air to clear some of the dirt from the air as is buffeted their faces slowly. "She hates them with a passion. Oh well. Aryn, this is Calum. One of our lookouts for the guild."

"Aryn? And who're you?!" He promptly hopped over, landing with another practical earthquake in front of the cat. Luckily for the Espurr, the grip Dust had was enough to keep him stable. "Some sorta outlaw Dust wrangled in? You'd best not be. The Mightyena Police Force doesn't take kindly to outlaws."

"Oh yes, because an Espurr who just had bandages in his nose is so OBVIOUSLY an outlaw. I was actually royally lost in the caves, but thanks for the vote of confidence." Oh jeez he sounded so much more courageous and collected than he actually felt right now. Good. He would need that. "Nice to meet you too, Calum."

Before Calum could even respond, obvious anger in his face boiling up to explode, Dust immediately chimed in. He was not about to pass this up. "And because I obviously just introduced you to an outlaw, maybe I should introduce you to my friend, my rear." And he promptly began walking past them. "You two've met before, right?" Ahrah promptly blinked, only to smile with his eye a they waltzed right by them.

"Now wait just a mi-" Calum was promptly silenced by a Sandslash poking his head from the ground, holding up a claw and shaking his head. Dust grinned back, giving a small wave at this as the Ground type waved back, smiling.

"Thanks Bean!" was all the Riolu said before promptly passing through the already opened gates of the building's entrance. "That was the other lookout. He's… basically Calum's temper regulator. He's an older guy, but he's very friendly."

"... Note to self, make friends with Bean," was Aryn's response. And he meant it. If he was around long enough, he would talk to Bean some. Calum, on the other hand… Yeah, no. No thanks. Big, ugly, loud, obnoxious. No thank you. "... um, I'm guessing there are other teams n' such, right? And that Fidget's on your team normally?"

"That there are, and that she is." Dust led the Espurr through a larger hallway until they came out into a larger room, quite a few Pokemon moving along on the inside. Some looked at large bulletin boards, others seemed to be talking with normal townsfolk with plenty of thanks to be given. Some Pokemon passed by Dust, giving a small wave or nod in acknowledgement while some peeked over at Dust, including a Minun and a Plusle, immediately running over.

"Mister Dust! Mister Ahrah!" came the Minun's feminine voice as they both came hopping over, smiling at the trio. "We were just waiting to say hi!"

The Plusle promptly spoke up as he noticed the Espurr beside him, walking up and beginning to shake Aryn's paw. "Hi! I'm Corbin, my sister's Colleen! Who're you, mister Espurr?"

Oh jeez. Twins. Young twins. Smile, Aryn, even if you're tired and had your fur ruffled by Calum calling you an outlaw. "Hi Corbin! Hi Colleen! I'm Aryn. Dust found me while he was looking for Mirror Lake; I kinda got lost." These two must really look up to the Riolu beside him, huh? Probably best to keep smiling. "But he found the lake and then he found me so it could be counted as a good day, yeah?"

Dust paused, glancing over at Aryn for a moment, keeping the comment about dorkiness to himself as Colleen promptly chirped in a response to that. "Oh really? That reminds me of my brother, Corbin. He got lost at the Ivydale Glen waterfall, and Dust ended up saving him there! He even waived the fee after we gave him a Revival Seed." And yet, now it was Dust's turn to promptly dork it out. He leaned back, face mildly flushed and let out a small chuckle, kicking out a leg.

"Oh c'mon… It was nothing. You wanted your brother safe and I'd feel terrible taking your money at your age. You need the Pokedollars more than I do," admitted the Riolu, obviously embarrassed by the admitting of what he had done in front of Aryn.

So. Dust was a guy with a heart, was he? Aryn looked up at his blushing new friend and simply smiled. "Still sweet of you."

Corbin giggled and nodded slightly, though Ahrah spoke up with his gentle tone to help things along. "Young ones, it is rather late. Why not head home?"

Colleen blinked and nodded, giving a respectful bow to them before allowing Corbin to take her hand. "Good idea. Thank you for seeing us again, Misters Dust and Ahrah! We'll see you soon!"

"Bye guys!" was Corbin's last statement before they were both out the door. However, Dust's smile was slowly fading, and he began to slowly adjust his jaw uncomfortably.

"... They're always around here… I worry whenever they've come here that something might've happened…" was what came out of the Riolu's mouth. Ahrah confirmed this feeling with an uncomfortable hum, the Honedge's eye closing solemnly. "... they lost their parents in a flash flood by the river they live on… They still live in the house it hit because they don't have anywhere's else to stay…"

"... Oh…" With that new bit of information, Aryn couldn't help but worriedly glance at where the two had gone hopping away. "M-maybe they think of the Guild as a family of sorts, then? I mean, as a guess. I dunno." New note to self- make an effort to look after the twins.

"Possibly…" was what Dust mused next, though he paused, beginning to look towards the center of the back wall. A door was there, one Dust began to approach. "Anyways, we ought to tell the Elder you're here. He's the Guildmaster." With a few taps of pawpads on the wooden floor beneath them, the duo was now in front of the door, promptly giving a knock.

Once they did so, the door promptly opened for them, two gems staring right at them. "Hellooooo. How might I be of service to Dust and company~?" was the sultry, smooth voice of a Sableye staring right at them. Or past them. It was hard to tell without any pupils to read.

"Uh, yeah, hi…" Aryn squeaked out. This guy had gems for eyes. Gems. For eyes. It shouldn't have been creepy but holy- yeah. It was creepy. His voice didn't help much. Poor guy probably had no control over that combination, however, so best to give him the benefit of the doubt. And maybe let Dust do the talking. Yes that sounded good.

"Hey, Sereth. We're here to see Guildmaster Grey Eyes," was the only thing Dust said. The newly identified Sableye. A crooked, cheshire grin crossed the gem-encrusted Pokemon's lips slowly, and he promptly stepped to the side. Upon a chair in front of a large desk sat a Dragonite, his grey eyes staring out at Dust, though they peeked at Aryn.

And almost immediately widened. "Come right in, I was expecting a report from Dust of the Lake anyhow… who might you be, young Espurr?" His voice was deep and held quite a bit of experience, but there was an evidence of warmth and calmness within it. He was a very old Elder, and the obvious leader of the Moon Guild. And he seemed like a pleasant man right from the get-go.

Okay, so that was Sereth. Fitting name, honestly. (He would need to apologize for being freaked out later, he knew that much.) And this big, older fella was the Elder Dust had mentioned before. Grey Eyes. Okay, he could remember that.

Upon being addressed, Aryn gave a tired smile. "Aryn, sir. Just Aryn. I, uh… well, I think Dust or Ahrah could explain it better. This is all kinda new for me."

And that they did. The Guildmaster promptly leaned forth upon the desk-like table, listening intently to the report. How the Lake was just as clean and preciously hidden as they had suspected. Dust could only find it through use of his empathetic senses, having spotted Aryn… a human turned Espurr. The Elder blinked at this, staring blankly as Dust explained Aryn's current inability to recall a thing other than his name and his previous form. After bringing him back here, they promptly wondered what to do. And the Elder had the perfect suggestion.

"Let him join your team."


End file.
